The present embodiments relate to medical imaging. In particular, imaging with a nuclear probe is provided.
Diagnostic medical modalities, such as computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance (MR), and ultrasound, acquire detailed images. The images depict anatomical structures, such as location of internal organs and tumors. Other modalities, such as positron emission tomography (PET) and single positron emission computed tomography (SPECT), may visualize functional changes or information. PET and SPECT may show areas of cancerous growth or other operation of anatomy, but with less or no details about the surrounding anatomy.
In nuclear medicine, hand-held nuclear activity devices, such as a gamma probe or a beta probe, are capable of detecting the uptake of injected tumor-seeking radiopharmaceuticals. Gamma probes, for example, are used in parathyroid and sentinel lymph node surgery. The gamma probes provide an audible signal to locate regions where injected radionuclides are present. The locations detected with a gamma probe may be visualized rather than just relying on an audible signal. A tracking system measures the position of the gamma probe while acquiring data to compute the images. Reconstructing these intra-operative 3-dimensional functional images provides valuable spatial information for a more accurate and less invasive surgery. However, high variability of scanning patterns between different operators as well as a lack of quality-control may result in repetition. The reconstructed image may have inadequate quality, requiring the process to be performed again. The tightly orchestrated work flow during surgery is delayed when unnecessary time is spent for scanning the volume of interest. Even with robotic positioning, unnecessary time may be used oversampling for accurate reconstruction.